lling in the white man's car in apparent
"social equality" and casually remarked, "Your people should feel very
grateful to Jefferson Davis for what he did for you. You ought to have
that picture." With a surprise that he could not conceal, he intimated
that he did not understand me. He "didn't care for it," and "didn't know
what Jeff Davis had done for his people."

Time being at some discount, I undertook to tell him that "Jefferson
Davis did more than any other person to take the South out of the Union.
He was chief among the secessionists. Then, as President, he made so
many mistakes, he did more than any other man to prevent the success of
the Confederacy. He did more to bring about the freedom of the slave
than any other man. Since the emancipation of your race came on as a
consequence of secession, why should you not be grateful to Jefferson
Davis and cherish his memory?"

The black man by this time had gathered himself up for his reply to my
Q.E.D. Not knowing what my sympathies might be, he replied in a slow and
careful way, "Well, sir, I can't see it as you do. The way it looks to
me is this, you know. In these days there are a good many people who
don't believe in God--not much--but I reckon it was God who set my
people free. You see, he didn't want that condition of things any
longer. It was God who did it, sir, that's what I think, and I don't
believe it was Jeff Davis. That's my view."

I did not argue the question further. When one gets down solid upon the
decrees, then I stop. But as the car rolled along with the speed usual
on Southern railways, I pondered the text, "The wrath of man shall
praise Him, and the remainder thereof shall he restrain."

* * * * *

He was a colored porter, and I may have transgressed the laws of "social
equality" in asking him aught other than to make up the berth, and to
call me early. With the judgment resting upon Geo. W. Cable--who is
never to be forgotten or forgiven because he had conference with some
colored people in Nashville, and did not insult them--one should be very
careful of his social equality. Nevertheless, I ventured to talk with
this colored porter. I asked him what he knew about his race, and what
he thought of his people and their prospects.

He said, "I was raised in North Carolina, never had much chance myself,
had only a country school to go to--kept by a colored man--not very good
teacher--pretty good--better than n